Typically, pistol safeties are mounted either on the pistol slide or on the pistol frame. Slide-mounted pistol safeties generally allow a user to cycle the slide back to determine whether there is a round of ammunition in the chamber. Such safeties can be inconvenient to use, however, due to their location on the pistol. Frame-mounted safeties can be more user friendly as they are positioned so that they may be easily actuated with a user's thumb. Such safeties, however, generally do not allow the pistol slide to move and, accordingly, do not allow a user to determine if there is a round of ammunition in the chamber.
In addition, compact frame pistols typically have a magazine capacity of less than their full size counterpart, due to a shorter frame. In contrast, full size pistols, which have a larger frame and magazine well, can hold significantly more rounds of ammunition. In certain applications, it is desirable to have a full size magazine capacity in a compact frame pistol.
Previous attempts to address this issue have involved adding a collar directly to the magazine itself. The disadvantage of this approach, however, is that once the collar is placed on the magazine, it is quite difficult to remove. Moreover, once the collared magazine has emptied, a user might not have the time to remove the collar to place it on another full size magazine.
In view of the above, there is a need for a magazine well extension that facilitates the use of a full size magazine with a compact frame pistol. There is an additional need for a magazine well extension that is easily removed and does not involve placing an extension on the magazine itself. Moreover, there is a need for a frame-mounted safety that allows an operator to cycle the pistol slide to determine whether there is ammunition in the chamber.